Developers are looking to incorporate 6 additional acres of land into the existing 43-acre Bell District development in Cedar Park in an effort to fill gaps and enhance the initial redevelopment master plan for the property.

Explained

The two portions of land developers are proposing to integrate into the Bell District planned development include:

• 5.21 acres zoned as general business
• 1.03 acres zoned as open space greenbelt

Located at 107 S. Bell Blvd., Cedar Park, the roughly 5-acre property would better support restaurants and retailers in Bell District and help lure larger employers to the area than the district could previously accommodate, RedLeaf partner Rob Shands said during the April 11 City Council meeting.

Additionally, the developers are planning to reconfigure the 1 acre of open space and incorporate it into the planned brownstones nearby.

Officials said the removal of the 1-acre open space will not impact or change the previously planned 14.7 acres of dedicated parkland and green space. Instead, the 1 acre will be distributed to another portion of the project such as the city library, Shands said.

Also of note

The developers are also proposing to make some revisions to the permitted uses in the Bell District development. The revisions include:

• Allowing stand-alone grocery stores by approval of a special-use permit
• Removing additional hotel use conditions to allow unique experiences, such as boutique hotels within the district, officials said

Hotel uses will still require a special-use permit, however.

What happens next?

Council is expected to consider the Bell District zoning changes for approval during the April 25 meeting. If council approves the amendments, the existing 43-acre Bell District site will be increased to roughly 49 total acres.